Abberly at West Ashley Blog

Are you a sailer or do you just love water fun? If you live in an apartment in Charleston, SC this is race week.

The America’s Cup is coming to Charleston! On Saturday, April 21, the 161-year-old trophy representing the apex of sailing will be on display at the regatta village. In addition, Tom Ehman of the Golden Gate Yacht Club will be on hand to offer his Cupdate, a multimedia presentation about the excitement of America’s Cup competition. Don’t miss it.

Charleston Race Week offers more than challenging race courses and experienced race committees. Enjoy top-notch shore side entertainment and convenient docking. What to see more? Watch the video!


Information oncharlestonraceweek.com.

What a great week to live in an apartment in Charleston, SC. This is a food city. Restaurant week in Charleston is an eleven day celebration of the best in southern food at hundreds of participating restaurants from January 12 through 22. You can see the menus of all the participating restaurants over the next few weeks on the Restaurant Week Website.

From fine dining to casual dining, participating restaurants will feature special menus items, promotions and discounts. You can sample the newest restaurants in Charleston as well as revisit your old favorites and taste a variety of exceptional dishes being prepared by chefs.  

Restaurant Week in Charleston is an exciting event that showcases the outstanding culinary scene throughout this exciting city. We hope you enjoy the most delicious week of the year in Charleston!

Many people are told when they are younger that renting is only for college graduates or people who cannot afford to buy.  Many parents hammer these ideas into their children and tell them that renting is equivalent to throwing money away every month.  Fortunately, today people are beginning to finally think for themselves and challenge these ideas.  Here are 4 reasons to pat yourself on the back for deciding to rent an apartment in Charleston, SC at an HHHunt Community!
 
1.  Renting can save money

At the very minimum you’ll be shelling out PITI for your home. That is:

1. Principal
2. Interest
3. Tax
4. Insurance

The PITI doesn’t include property maintenance like maintaining the yard, paint, plumbing, repairs, decorating, etc… When you rent an apartment at an HHHunt community, the monthly payment is almost always quite a bit less than the PITI in your area and there are no maintenance expenses!

2. Homeowners’ tax deductions are overstated

According to research quoted by MSN, “… half of homeowners don’t get a break, because even with mortgage interest and property taxes, their total deductions do not exceed the standard federal tax deduction ($11,900 for couples and $5,450 for singles)”.

For these folks, it’s like spending $100 to save $20. They’re better off saving the difference and investing it.   Even if there is a “break” on your taxes, you typically had to spend more than you would have spent to rent to get back that $20 for every $100 spent in interest payments.

3. Renting gives you flexibility

For the up and coming young professional, you’re better off renting in Charleston and saving for a few years than to buy a small condo. Who knows how fast you will outgrow it?  When you own a home, you can’t always sell it when you need to sell it at the price you want to sell it in order to accept a new employment opportunity.  If you have owned a home and don’t want the constant maintenance responsibility, renting gives you the opportunity to enjoy your weekends instead of completing that “to do” list.

4.  Our superb service teams!

Most apartment communities offer 24 hour emergency maintenance and technicians who are skilled in HVAC, plumbing, and electrical.  At an HHHunt Community, our service teams take great pride in offering prompt and professional service to you.  Whether you need a light bulb changed or a new compressor for your AC unit, we are there to take care of you as fast and efficient as possible.  We are always a phone call or email away and most service requests are performed on the same day or within 24 hours!

There is plenty of Christmas joy for everyone who lives in an apartment in Charleston, SC. Christmas in Charleston has so many fun events and activities for you to enjoy.  Storefronts decked out in garland, churches adorned with wreaths, spirituals concerts, and candlelight tours allows you to share in old fashioned holiday fun across the Charleston area.

Some of the fun events include:

The 3rd annual Holiday Pub Crawl.  The pub tour is the absolute BEST way to tour the city in a unique and festive way! Gather your friends, family and enjoy the town. This Holiday Pub Crawl visits historic taverns and pubs, where you will sample appetizers and holiday treats, while tasting a pint of Christmas ale or beverage of choice.
 
Charleston Sleigh Ride-Start a new Christmas tradition on the Charleston Sleigh Ride! The boat the Thriller Charleston slows down to cruising for a one hour afternoon holiday excursion along the historic Charleston Harbor waterfront. Enjoy hot chocolate in your complimentary travel mug as you listen to stories and music of the season. Dress warmly and enjoy the holiday beauty of Charleston from the water!

There are so many events to celebrate the season with during Christmas in Charleston. Visit www.christmasincharleston.com for more ideas.

The housing market is stagnating right now and real estate brokers would have potential buyers believe that there is no better time than the present to buy a home. It is true, prices are down and mortgage rates are at all-time lows.

Unfortunately for the real estate brokers, many clients are not persuaded by that logic. Instead, in increasing numbers, they are choosing to rent instead of buy — unconvinced that the housing market has yet hit bottom. Would be buyers also understand that unless you plan to stay in your home for more than 10 years, buying a home may not be the right investment for everyone.

With apartments in Charleston, SC located near water, shops and restaurants, offering apartment amenities that can’t be found in homes, renting is a great option for many. There is also a broad mix of tenants at Abberly at West Ashley Apartment homes: young single residents and families and empty-nesters that no longer have homeownership on their wish list.

For information on beautiful one-and two bedroom apartments in Charleston, SC contact  Abberly at West Ashley Apartments.

The question has arisen more and more. Should I rent or buy? The answer is personal to your situation. While mortgage rates and housing prices are low, there is still a lot to be said for renting an apartment in Charleston, SC.

Based on your financial situation, your job situation and frankly, how much time you want to spend on home repairs, the answer could be very different for every individual or family.

There is much to be said about renting. Sudden roof leaks or broken appliances can make your wallet take a hit. Unforeseen home expenses cannot really be incorporated into a budget.

If there is any possibility that you will not stay in the Charleston, SC area or that you will relocate, renting may be a better option. Closing costs and fees can really add up, not to mention the first several years of mortgage payments go to the interest alone not the principal.

But there is an even more practical reason for renting. Maybe you just don’t have any interest in home repairs and cutting the lawn. Apartments are the solution to maintenance free living without the condo fees. With so much to do in Charleston, SC your time off should be your time off to spend however you like.

Talk to a financial adviser, consider your long term financial goals, and review your expenses first when considering renting or buying.

Contact Abberly at West Ashley Apartment Homes if you want more information on renting in Charleston, SC.

When deciding whether to rent or buy, you are making the choice to rent an apartment home or renting the capital needed to buy a home. Most Americans don't consider that they are renting equity (from the bank) to buy a home. As you are aware, very little equity is built in the first few years of paying a mortgage. Many people are surprisingly still very unaware of this fact.

This following article explains how renting is financially better than buying in about 75% of cases!

For the Past 30 Years, Renting Was Generally Better Than Buying

If homeownership is the American dream, then the nation had better wake up. That's the message from a new research paper that examines whether buying or renting a home was a better financial decision over the past 30 years. Most would find the result surprising: over the period Americans were better off renting between 65% and 75% of the time, depending on the investment alternative.

The article essentially looks at eight-year periods and assumes that a person invests the money he or she saves by renting. Since buying is generally more expensive than renting, renters have extra money to invest. It also makes a number of assumptions favorable to homeownership, including gains from the mortgage interest tax deduction, the option to refinance, and the ability to walk away -- loss-free -- from an underwater mortgage. Still, renting wins approximately three-quarters of the time.

The staff at economic research organization e21 explains why this result actually shouldn't be so shocking:

Counter-intuitive as the finding may be to some, it is actually quite logical. Unless someone possesses the cash necessary to buy a residence, he or she will be renting one way or another. The choice is between renting the property directly or instead renting the capital necessary to buy the property. The amount of capital to be rented is a function of house prices, while the bulk of a mortgage payment is interest, which is the rental payment on this capital. After 2 years, the typical 30-year amortizing mortgage balance has been reduced by less than 3%. This means that a household that took out a $300,000 mortgage with a 5% interest rate to buy a home has only reduced its mortgage balance by $8,600 after two years despite spending nearly $39,000 in total over this period.

Housing advocates may respond by pointing out that at least the $8,600 in this scenario went towards home equity rather than simply being squandered on rent. But, as demonstrated in the Real Estate Economics article, the principal component of each mortgage payment - i.e. the portion of the mortgage payment that goes towards reducing the principal mortgage balance instead of interest - is an added expense renters don't have.

This turns the real estate industry's biggest talking point on its head: you aren't throwing rent into the wind each month, you're casting away equity.

Of course, that equity also provides a potential benefit. The analysis's eight-year rolling methodology appears to miss the biggest reward of owning a home: living rent-free once the home is paid off. After that 30-years is up, the longer a family remains in that home rent-free, the more buying pays off. Taking this into account would almost certainly change the result in some, if not all situations. Renting may be a better option initially, but there's no eventual reward.

An important point still needs to be made here: buying a home that you don't plan to live in for an extended period of time probably isn't a great idea. The rent you pay in the form of interest on a 30-year loan for five or even 10 years won't be any better than if you had just rented outright. But if you're planning on living in a home for 30-plus years, then you could potentially get some benefit from buying rather than renting.

Original article by By Daniel Indiviglio, The Atlantic

Everyone has heard about having an indoor herb garden. There is nothing more delicious than fresh rosemary, basil and parsley in your home cooked recipes. The bright and airy apartments of Abberly at West Ashley are the perfect place to set up your own indoor garden. Not only will you have fresh ingredients, but you will bring light and cheer to your home.

Rosemary grows into a beautiful and low maintenance plant, and parsley, basil and chives are universal and easy to care for as well. Really, any herb you enjoy is easy to grow indoors, but don’t just stop with herbs. Did you know there are several vegetables that are easy to grow too? Leaf lettuces such as Boston and Bibb are very easy to grow from seed in a small window box.  Spinach and Kale work well also. You can pick off the leaves as you need them and enjoy a fresh salad at lunch or dinner.

Veggies like tomatoes can be grown inside as well.  Cherry tomatoes are best but you can grow any size tomato. The larger tomato plants do need a larger pot with more soil, but the rewards are worth it for a nice, fresh tomato in your sandwich. Give tomatoes a spot in your apartment home that gets about 6-8 hours of light and the soil should remain moist.

Believe it or not, green beans and peppers are also great plants for indoor gardening. They both have lots of beautiful foliage and it is fun to watch the initial flowers turn into edible veggies. Be creative with your indoor garden, and give it a try. Add a burst of color and life to your apartment home and enjoy picking and eating fresh herbs and vegetables.

It pitted amateur athletes against one another and muscle-bound goliaths for our enjoyment and lasted for seven seasons in syndication in the early 1990s before being restarted for a brief time a couple of years ago.

American Gladiators was known for the tackles, for cool action nouns for names like Nitro, Lace, Blaze and Laser and for the Eliminator, a large obstacle course that featured a balance beam, a swing on a rope over a wall and a 20-foot climb up a cargo net.

You can try some of these obstacles for yourself at the Challenge Course at James Island County Park on Friday, May 20. From 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., you can experience the excitement of walking across a cable then taking a zip line ride down a 200-foot cable.

For adventures ages 18 and up, you can travel eight miles from Abberly at West Ashley east on Savannah Highway then south on Folly Road towards Riverland Drive.

You can register in advance or on-site at the Climbing Wall. Call (843) 795-4386 for more information.

Photo via Charleston County Parks & Recreation

America’s only tea garden is here in Charleston and in celebration of their crop harvest, they’ll be holding the First Flush FesTEAval this weekend.

This is the fifth year the plantation on Wadmalaws Island will open their doors and invite the surrounding community to food vendors, arts and craft and free First Flush Tea, deemed by avid tea drinkers to be the most amazing and unique cup.

But this isn’t just about a caffeinated drink associated with England and early mornings.

There will be ice cold beer for those of age and music all day, starting an hour after the gates open at 11 a.m. The Homegrown Stage will feature just that with A Fragile Tomorrow and The Occasional Milkshake which features Mark Bryan and Gary Greene from Hootie & The Blowfish and Hank Futch of The Blue Dogs.

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, described as a modern-day version of Tina Turner fronting for the Rolling Stones, is the headline act and they’ll take the Main Stage at 6:15 p.m.

The Charleston Tea Plantation is east on Savannah Highway then south on Main Street to Maybank Highway. Tickets are $20 in advance and you can call (843) 559-0383 for more information.

Photo via Grace Potter and the Nocturnals